US President Donald Trump said on Monday the United States would impose a 25% tariff on imports from Japan and South Korea beginning August 1, as he unveiled the first two of what he has said will be a wave of letters to trading partners outlining the new levies they face.
"If for any reason you decide to raise your Tariffs, then, whatever the number you choose to raise them by, will be added onto the 25% that we charge," Trump said in letters to the leaders of the two Asian countries, which he posted on his Truth Social platform.
The rate for South Korea is the same as what Trump initially announced on April 2, while the rate for Japan is 1 point higher than first announced. Trump a week later capped all the so-called reciprocal tariffs at 10% until July 9 to allow for negotiations. Only two agreements have so far been reached, with Britain and Vietnam.
US stocks fell in response, the latest market ruction since Trump unleashed a global trade war on his return to office in January. His moves have repeatedly roiled financial markets and sent policymakers scrambling to protect their economies.
US-listed shares of Japanese automotive companies fell, with Toyota Motor down 4.1% in early afternoon trading and Honda Motor off by 3.8%.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said earlier on Monday he expected to make several trade announcements in the next 48 hours, adding that his inbox was full of last-ditch offers from countries to clinch a tariff deal before a July 9 deadline.
It was not immediately clear if other letters to leaders would be made public ahead of Wednesday's deadline.
Bessent did not say which countries could get deals and what they might contain. Trump has kept much of the world guessing on the outcome of months of talks with countries hoping to avoid the hefty tariff hikes he has threatened.
"We've had a lot of people change their tune in terms of negotiations. So my mailbox was full last night with a lot of new offers, a lot of new proposals," Bessent said in an interview with CNBC. "So it's going to be a busy couple of days."
More countries
Trump announced tariffs on five more countries Monday afternoon on Truth Social, in letters that were similar to the ones published on South Korea and Japan.
They mostly differed from rates set April 2, but were not always an increase:
- Malaysia faces a 25% tariff rate, up from 24%
- Kazakhstan received a 25% rate, down from 27%
- South Africa received a 30% rate, unchanged from April 2
- Laos received a 40% rate, down from 48%
- Myanmar received a 40% rate, down from 44%
BRICS threat
For its part, the European Union still aims to reach a trade deal by July 9 after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Trump had a "good exchange," a Commission spokesperson said.
It was not immediately clear, however, whether there had been a meaningful breakthrough in talks to stave off tariff hikes on the United States' largest trading partner.
Adding to the pressure, Trump threatened to impose a 17% tariff on EU food and agriculture exports, it emerged last week.
Trump had said on Sunday the US was close to finalizing several trade pacts and would notify other countries by July 9 of higher tariff rates. He said they would not take effect until August 1, a three-week reprieve.
He also put members of the developing nations' BRICS group in his sights as its leaders met in Brazil, threatening an additional 10% tariff on any BRICS countries aligning themselves with "anti-American" policies.
The BRICS group comprises Brazil, Russia, India and China and South Africa along with recent joiners Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates.
Trump's comments hit the South African rand.
EU seeks effective approach to Trump
The EU has been torn over whether to push for a quick and light trade deal or back its own economic clout in trying to negotiate a better outcome. It had already dropped hopes for a comprehensive trade agreement before the July deadline.
"We want to reach a deal with the US We want to avoid tariffs," the spokesperson told reporters at a daily briefing. "We want to achieve win-win outcomes, not lose-lose outcomes."
Without a preliminary agreement, broad US tariffs on most imports would rise from their current 10% to the rates set out by Trump on April 2. In the EU's case, that would be 20%.
Von der Leyen also held talks with the leaders of Germany, France and Italy at the weekend, Germany said. Chancellor Friedrich Merz has repeatedly stressed the need for a quick deal to protect industries vulnerable to tariffs ranging from cars to pharmaceuticals.
The German spokesperson said the parties should allow themselves "another 24 or 48 hours to come to a decision."
Germany's Mercedes-Benz said on Monday its second-quarter unit sales of cars and vans had fallen 9%, blaming tariffs.
Russia said BRICS was "a group of countries that share common approaches and a common world view on how to cooperate, based on their own interests."
"And this cooperation within BRICS has never been and will never be directed against any third countries," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
